When we arrived at Venice Airport we took the Alilaguna Line Blue water bus link (27 euros return) directly to the Hilton Molino Stucky hotel stop (a 1 hr 40 min sightseeing trip via Murano, Arsenale, San Marco to Giudecca!), where we were met by the lovely owner & excellent host Cristina, who kindly walked us the 50m to our apartment, which was situated down a side alley next to the historic Fortuny fabric design house & factory. Cristina speaks very good English and we were given a quick guide to the layout of the apartment, the keys, safe, the air con, roof blinds etc.
Our apartment had a blue / nautical theme and was very nicely decorated. There was a sitting area on the ground floor with small TV (we never watched it) with an adjoining open plan kitchen/diner, while below the stairs to the upper level, there was a utility room with a sink, washer/dryer and an iron/ironing board. There were three bedrooms – a main double bedroom with en suite on the ground floor and upstairs a further double bed on a mezzanine floor and another bedroom with two small single beds, which were more suited for children than adults as the mattresses were rather narrow. The bathroom upstairs had a wash basin, toilet & shower cubicle, which was quite small and not easy to access unless you were very slim! A minor point was that there was no wardrobe in the mezzanine bedroom, only in the adjoining bedroom.
We did self-cater for breakfast & evening meals most days – there is a local Coop and a nearby bakery for fresh croissants, rolls & cakes, even cartons of wine if desperate! Would suggest avoiding the very expensive fruit & vegetable shop by Palanca water stop - 6.90 Euros for a small galia melon which was 3.40 in the Coop! The waterfront along Guidecca has several restaurants, pizzerias and bars and we can recommend the A E Botti restaurant – their lasagne just melted in the mouth.
We thought Giudecca was lovely and so quiet compared to the mayhem of St Mark’s. Cristina’s apartments have a lovely situation and from the Palanca water bus stops you can easily get to St Marks, Dorsodoro, Arsenale, Piazzale Roma & the railway station etc. Just make sure the water bus is going in the direction you want to go! And Giudecca is a great place to sit and watch the huge cruise ships sail by as they leave in the evening. Quite a sight but fear that several thousand passengers from three cruise ships in one day could contribute to the tourist overload in the city.
